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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. kid — to tease
  5. tear — to rip
  6. fall — to drop
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. kid — child
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. fall — to drop
  11. dip — to sink
  12. bass — the fish
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. race — humankind
  17. fall — the season
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. tear — from crying
  21. race — a contest
  22. race — the arms race
  23. bass — low music
  24. dip — a sauce

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com